photo courtesy of www.celebritywonder.com
It’s been seven years since Mel Gibson’s last starring role in a major motion picture. Once considered one of Hollywood’s most dynamic actors and directors, Gibson has been hibernating amidst a squabble of controversy including drunk driving and making anti-Semitic and homophobic remarks that have since gone public.
Most actors can’t revive their respective careers after this kind of shame. But most actors aren’t Mel Gibson. Love him or hate him, he’s the perfect actor for the film “Edge of Darkness.”
Gibson plays rough-and-tumble cop Thomas Craven, seeking revenge for the death of his only daughter. Craven’s a dark and angry character, playing off Gibson’s own persona. After his daughter is brutally shot to death outside his home, Craven is led to believe it’s because someone is out to get him. Instead, we find out his daughter is implicated in a larger conspiracy involving nuclear weapons and corrupt political bigwigs.
Of course, an average law officer wouldn’t be allowed to pursue the case of his or her daughter’s murder. Hollywood logic wins out here, apparently giving Craven the right to avenge his daughter’s death on his own terms, in his own way, with no one being the wiser.
As Craven goes after his daughter’s attackers, he’s brought closer to his metaphorical “edge of darkness”—that falling-off place where sane men know no boundaries. Gibson portrays Craven with the grittiness it requires. His acting is admittedly over-the-top, but who cares? Craven is Gibson at his best: moments of silence torn apart by spontaneous interludes of rage and butt-kicking.
With Martin Campbell directing (most noted for his work on the James Bond films “GoldenEye” and “Casino Royale”), the film moves at an intermittent speed, mixing grisly action with sensitive drama. “Edge of Darkness” lags in its surprises, however, as each one is passed off as some huge revelation that no one saw coming. Campbell and Gibson seem to forget that audiences are smarter these days and tend to know what’s coming. Each surprise in “Edge of Darkness” is predictable, thereby stripping the movie of potential thrills.
While the trailer for “Edge of Darkness” markets the film as more of a “Taken” scenario (the 2008 hit starring Liam Neeson), Campbell’s version of the father-daughter action flick is thankfully more structured. The story is layered enough to keep audiences interested. There’s a larger political point to be made in “Edge of Darkness,” and a point that’s made well. This isn’t just a story about a father and his daughter. This is a story about the rise of nuclear warfare, and the consequences it could have for a crooked American government.
Verdict: 3/5 stars
